Arizona goes pro-business, recognizing all occupational licenses

Plan shows state acknowledges 'importance of hard work'

Arizona has become the first state to recognize occupational licenses from other states.

Horror stories abound of states bullying and badgering people seeking licenses required in many trades, including braiding hair and guiding ships into port.

Now, according to Jenna Bentley of the Goldwater Institute, “New Arizonans who hold licenses will no longer be punished for trying to make their career in the Grand Canyon State – and that’s an important sign that Arizona is a place that truly recognizes the important of hard work.”

It’s House Bill 2569 that specifies that the state now will recognize licenses from other states.

“Too often, our government has acted as an adversary, not an ally, for people who want to work. Well today, those days are over,” the governor said. “We believe (the law) could be a model for the country on how to unleash economic opportunity and how Republicans and Democrats can work together to get things done.”

The Republican governor had called for the measure months ago, saying the state should be able to remove job barriers for newcomers.

The Goldwater Institute said the bill, sponsored by Rep. Warren Peterson, passed both houses of the Arizona legislature easily.

“At the Goldwater Institute, we’ve long advocated for occupational licensing reform, including universal recognition. In 2017, we took on the case of behavioral health counselor Annette Stanley, who sought an Arizona license when she moved there from Kansas in 2014. Because Stanley had owned her own practice, the state of Arizona would not recognize hours accumulated for her Kansas license. Stanley was able to ask the state Board of Behavioral Health Examiners to review the regulations keeping her from getting her Arizona license, and the Board granted her petition to allow her to practice in Arizona,” the organization said.

“Starting today, because of Arizona’s new occupational licensing law, no occupational license holder will have to jump through the same hoops Annette Stanley was forced to go through,” said Bentley.